Lizzie's War (34 page)

‘Was it very bad?'

‘No, not really. I thought he might be worse than he is – but lots of men have lost limbs. Tony's alive – and he has his shop. He has a lot more than many other men who've been wounded.'

‘Yes, but I know you. I know you're worried.'

‘He was so bitter at first – then I managed to pull him out of it, but I'm afraid he'll slip back when I'm not there. We're hoping he will be transferred to London soon for rehabilitation, but it probably won't be for some weeks yet. He has a piece of shrapnel in his leg that has to come out and they're not sure about his head wound yet. He will be under supervision for a while…'

‘At least he's alive,' Lizzie said. ‘You said he wasn't scarred facially?'

‘He looks much as he always did, though I think he'll have a scar on his forehead – but none of that matters… it's what he's like inside. What kind of a man he will be?'

‘You're thinking of the way Bernie treated you?' Lizzie reached for her hand again. ‘Don't, Beth, don't even think it. Tony wouldn't hurt you, believe me. He always loved you, even after you broke up.'

A little shudder went through Beth. ‘I want to believe that, and I do love him – but I've heard women say their husbands are changed by the war… some of them become violent.'

‘Tony might be angry and bitter, love, but not with you. Remember the way it was between you and don't let Bernie's cruelty overshadow your lives. You've been getting on so well, putting it behind you. Tony needs you, you can't let him down.'

Beth lifted her head and smiled. ‘I know and I'm just being silly – I suppose it's reaction. It's not going to be easy – he's going to resent what happened to him.'

‘Yes, of course he will,' Lizzie said, ‘but in time he will accept it and you'll have a chance of a good life together. You're going to need to be strong for Tony, Beth – and forget Bernie. If you love him, Tony has to be your priority.' Lizzie hesitated, then, ‘Why don't you take some time off and spend a few days with him? You could leave the twins with your mother. I'm sure Aunt Miriam would be glad to help too.'

‘What about his shop?' Beth said. ‘I can't just leave it closed or he'll lose everything.'

‘I could find someone to look after it for you – and I'll order anything that's short for the moment. You can sort it out properly when you get back.'

‘I suppose I could…' Beth looked at her, a gleam of excitement in her eyes. ‘We could go to the shop tomorrow – and you know what sort of person we need in there…'

‘Yes, I do,' Lizzie said. ‘As a matter of fact, I might know the very person. Jean was telling me about her sister-in-law. Her husband is away in the Army; she has to work to provide enough money for her kids, but she hates working in a factory and she used to work in a shop like Tony's before the war started. I'll ask her if she can help out if you want…'

‘She sounds just right,' Beth said. ‘You don't mind if I take time off from the showroom?'

‘We'll manage, although I'll miss you. But it's what you need to do for both of your sakes, Beth. Tony needs support to get him through this – and you need to be with him, to get to know him again. After all, it's a long time since you were going out together…'

‘It seems like a lifetime,' Beth said and her throat caught on a sob. ‘I wish none of it had happened, Lizzie. I wish I'd married him and worked in the shop when he asked me.'

‘You can't wish the twins away?'

‘No…' Beth shook her head. ‘No, not them, I love them – but all the rest…'

‘We'd all like to change things,' Lizzie said. ‘I wish I'd gone to work for Sebastian when he first asked, and yet then I wouldn't have met Ed or had Betty. We both have memories, Beth. Some of them good, some of them bad – but they make us what we are, love.' She shook her head sadly. ‘I just wish I had another chance to be happy…'

‘Sebastian will come back to you if he's alive.'

‘Yes, I know. Sometimes I'm so sure he is, so sure he's thinking about me – at other times I feel close to despair, but I have to carry on and wait… it's what we all have to do, Beth.'

Lizzie looked up as the door of the office opened and a man in a grey suit entered. She frowned, because she didn't know him and wasn't expecting any salespeople or visitors.

‘Your receptionist told me to come through,' he said and offered his hand to her. ‘I'm Richard Forrest and I work for Black, Forrest and Grant the solicitors…'

‘Is something wrong with my lease or have I broken Government regulations?'

‘Nothing of the sort, Mrs Winters. Some time back we had an official letter informing us that your husband was missing presumed dead and naming you as his next of kin. I wrote at the time but you didn't reply. You hadn't been in touch with us so we thought you might not be aware of your husband's will naming you as his sole beneficiary…'

‘No, I wasn't aware, though Sebastian told me he would make provision for me,' Lizzie said. ‘I'm afraid I never received your letter, Mr Forrest. The reason I didn't think it necessary to contact anyone was that I don't believe my husband is dead. He is missing, but as far as I've been told they haven't found proof of his death…' She caught her breath. ‘Was your reason for visiting me important?'

‘Yes, I believe so. Your husband owns quite a few properties, Mrs Winters. Some of them are let to the Government for the duration and the rent continues to be paid annually, as before, which is one of the reasons we needed to speak to you. Your husband had it paid into an account, which at the moment you could not access.'

‘I have no wish to access it. Besides, surely we have to wait seven years before Sebastian is confirmed dead in law?'

‘Yes, that's true, but your husband was a thoughtful man, Mrs Winters. He wrote it into his will that if after eighteen months he was still missing and nothing definite had been decided, you would be entitled to dispose of the property if you wished or to use the capital – I imagine he didn't want his business affairs to be a burden to you. I was instructed to contact you if it became necessary and ask for your instructions in the matter of his property.'

‘I have no need of either the capital or the income for the time being…' She wanted to push him away, to stop him, because to hear him discussing Sebastian's property was like admitting he was dead. Yet she had to face up to it, and she had to do whatever was needed – for Sebastian's sake. He would expect her to look after things and not let them slide.

‘I realize this must be painful for you – when you have a funeral and closure these things can be dealt with, but in this case we shall have to manage the property for your benefit until your husband returns or...'

‘What about the other properties?' Lizzie asked quickly, because her throat was tight and it hurt too much to listen to him speak in that way of Sebastian.

‘Yes, well, there is the lease on your husband's own house. He lent it to some American friends for as long as they required it and they are leaving for home next month – we need to know if you wish us to lease it to similar clients?'

‘No, I don't think so,' Lizzie said. ‘Do you have the keys?'

‘Yes, of course. You could view it after the sixth of June if you wish?'

‘Yes, I should like to see it,' Lizzie said. ‘I'm not sure what I would wish to do with it if – if my husband did not return, but I have not yet given up hope, and I wouldn't dream of selling his home while there is hope.'

‘Quite. So you wish it to remain empty for the moment?'

‘Perhaps we might engage a part-time housekeeper to look after it – keep it aired, warm in winter and so forth?'

‘Would you like me to see to it for you?'

‘Yes please,' Lizzie said. ‘Was there anything else?' She wanted this interview over and him gone, because this was too painful.

‘Captain Winters made several investments that are due to end soon – would you wish me to reinvest in similar projects?'

‘That I can't answer until I know more about them,' Lizzie said. ‘I suggest we have a meeting after I visit the house – and then we'll decide what is best. However, no assets are to be sold or disposed of until my husband returns or…' she shook her head. ‘If that is all for the moment…' She just wanted him to go, because it hurt too much to think about the future without hope of Sebastian ever returning.

‘Yes, Mrs Winters. I must say you seem to have a clear head for business. I hadn't expected that, but I am glad to know that you've taken charge.'

‘In my husband's absence I must look out for his affairs,' Lizzie said. ‘Thank you for calling on me – I shall be in touch soon.'

‘Yes, of course. I shall leave you my card.' He placed it on the desk, inclined his head and went out.

Lizzie sat down feeling as if all the air had been squeezed from her body. It seemed that everyone was accepting that Sebastian was dead – everyone but her. She blinked hard, determined not to let the tears fall. She wouldn't give up and she was angry that the solicitors had assumed he was dead, whereas she'd only been told he was missing. No one knew for sure and it wasn't right just to dismiss him like that.

‘Sebastian,' she whispered. ‘Please don't be dead, please come back and prove them all wrong, my love. I want you… love you so much…'

Lizzie wasn't going to sit and feel sorry for herself. She got up, pulled on her suit jacket and set a hat on her head. Ed was expecting her to visit him at Oliver's workshops and that was just what she intended to do.

A smile touched her lips as she thought of her great friend and partner. She wasn't sure, but she suspected that Ed had recently met a young woman he rather liked. Her name was Anne and she was a buyer for a prestigious chain of fashion shops in London, Birmingham and Manchester. He hadn't said anything to Lizzie yet, but her name seemed to come up in his conversation quite often.

Walking to her bus stop, Lizzie's thoughts turned to Beth. She'd gone down to Portsmouth to be with Tony as he prepared to have the operation on his leg. When Beth had telephoned her the previous night, she'd said it looked as if his head wound was all right; the doctors were satisfied there was no shrapnel embedded in his skull and the amputation of his arm was no longer hurting him as much. Apparently, the doctors were talking about him being able to come to a hospital in London soon. It was wonderful news and Lizzie was pleased for her friend. Beth had sounded far more cheerful.

‘Tony is really pleased that I came down for a few days. He knows I have to be back in London soon, because of the twins, but I've promised to get down as much as I can and he seems set on getting better and out of hospital as soon as possible.'

‘You've given him faith and hope in the future,' Lizzie said. ‘What about you, love – are you feeling better about things yourself?'

‘Yes, I am. I was silly to worry, Lizzie. Tony isn't a bit like Bernie and I like it when he kisses me. I think it's going to be all right…'

‘Well, just keep strong and it will,' Lizzie had told her. She had to do the same thing herself, because it was hard having to face up to the fact that the solicitors might be right. What use would she have for a shop in the West End and a big house if she couldn't have the man she loved?

*

‘We've employed two new seamstresses and a cutter,' Ed said when they talked in the office over coffee later that morning. ‘The government has renewed the contracts for the berets and caps we've been making, and we've just started producing the new line of straw hats you designed for the summer.' He looked pleased to be running the workshops, as if he'd always felt he belonged at the helm. ‘But I'll be glad when we can do more of your hats and less of the bread and butter stuff, Lizzie.'

‘I was afraid they would want us to continue with the military stuff,' Lizzie said. ‘I would rather have turned my full production over to stylish hats again, because the orders are coming in so fast recently that we can't keep up. I think women are so fed up with the Utility fashions that they cheer themselves up with a new hat, and who can blame them with the way things are going? But I suppose we can't refuse the Government work.'

‘It's necessary for the moment, Lizzie. Brenda can do it with her eyes shut – and now we have the new staff, I can come back to you two days a week.'

‘That is good news,' Lizzie said. ‘I do miss working with you, Ed – especially when Beth is away too.'

He nodded and looked pleased, then, ‘How is that young man of hers?'

‘He has his operation today. If all goes well, Beth should be back at work on Monday. She'll go down again on Thursday and stop until Sunday evening. Her mother doesn't mind – and Aunt Miriam has the kids half the time anyway.'

‘I'm glad Beth has another chance to be happy,' Ed said and there was a slightly wistful expression in his eyes. ‘Oh, I might be going away for the weekend, Lizzie. I've promised to take a friend to the sea for a couple of days.'

‘Lovely. Someone I know?'

‘Yes, you've met Anne. She's a widow and she has to support herself and her teenage son…'

‘Well, have a wonderful time…'

‘I think we shall,' Ed smiled. ‘Something on your mind?'

‘You know me so well…' Lizzie smothered a sigh. ‘I had a visit from Sebastian's lawyers today. They wanted to know if I required them to re-let his house once the present tenants return to America.'

‘And shall you?'

‘I don't know what to do,' Lizzie confessed. ‘I've only been to the house once – it is beautiful. The gardens were lovely before the war, but I don't know if they still look the same. I intend to take a look around soon.'